Dances with Cinderella
by Mystik225
Summary: Austin reminisces about dances he shared with his daughter.


Thanks for all the reviews and love on Broken Hearts. You may recognize some of the characters from that story in this one. This is a future fic, was listening to "Cinderella" by Steven Curtis Chapman and this is the result. I'm not going to lie, I kinda love this little story of mine.

Disclaimer: I do not own Austin & Ally, they belong to Disney and I'm just borrowing them to play. I promise to return them when I'm done.

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><p>"And now it is time for the father-daughter dance. Can we have the bride and her father to the center of the dance floor?"<p>

Austin headed to the center of the dance floor, bowing as he offered his hand to Makenna. With a giggle she accepted it, placing her other hand on his shoulder. As the opening notes of the song started, Austin was swept back to a nearly forgotten memory.

_He sat in the armchair reading over the latest contract proposal from Starr Records. Three albums over the next four years, with a minimum of three tours, each tour was to last no less than four months with only a random week here and there to be home. He wasn't sure he wanted to be away from home that much. He wasn't a young, carefree kid anymore. He had a wife and a family now, going on tour no longer held the appeal it had when he was 17._

"_Daddy, Daddy!" His little girl ran in, wearing her favorite dress-up outfit. She spun around the room, dancing to a song only she could hear as the blue skirt of her Cinderella dress twirled about her legs. "Daddy, come dance with me. I'm going to the ball at the castle tonight and I need to practice so I'm ready to dance with the prince." With a smile he set aside the papers and stood, Makenna running over to stand on his feet as she grabbed his hands. With slow, small steps he moved about the room as she hummed a random melody. These were the moments he was afraid of missing if he was away for months at a time, and he knew that he couldn't sign the contract._

As the song moved into the chorus he spun Makenna away from and then back to him, her full white gown twirling about her legs. Thankfully she took after him and not her mother when it came to dancing, or that could have gone terribly wrong. As the song moved to the next verse, another memory filled his mind.

"_Daddy, what do you think? Do you like it?" He looked up to see his little girl looking far to grown up in her prom dress. Soft pink, it fit close to her body until it reached her knees at which point it flared out and looked like row upon row of petals draping down to the floor. Glittering straps held the bodice up and a semi-sheer wrap helped conceal the skin of her shoulders. He swallowed, nearly overwhelmed by the reality that his little girl was neither little, nor a girl. She was rapidly becoming a young woman. She fidgeted nervously as he stood and stared at her. "Honey, you look beautiful" he managed to choke out. She smiled in relief, then asked, "Daddy, can you help me practice dancing?" She selected a song on her MP3 player and the soft notes soon filled the room. As he put one hand on her waist and held her hand in the other, she looked up at him nervously. "Daddy, when Scott comes to pick me up for the prom next weekend can you promise me you won't do anything to scare him away? He's a really nice guy, I think you'll like him. Mom knows him and she likes him."_

Austin looked down at the girl glowing in his arms and squeezed her hand. "You happy, Pixie?"

She beamed up at him. "Indescribably happy. If you love Mom near as much as I love Scott, now I understand so much." At his questioning look she elaborated. "You gave up so much of your career for Mom, and for us kids. I never really understood why until now. Thank you, Daddy."

As the song entered the final verse he thought back to six months prior. _Makenna came home from a date with Scott, fairly floating as she came through the door. She found him in the den, reviewing the books for the store. "Daddy, do you have a minute?" When he turned to her and replied, "Always for you, Pixie" she entered the room and sat in the chair beside him, unable to stop smiling. "Daddy, we got engaged tonight! I'm getting married!" He smiled at her, a hint of sadness in his eyes. He knew that this day was coming, Scott had come to speak to him and Ally just a few weeks prior telling them of his intentions. "Honey, that is wonderful. I'm so happy for you." She smiled at him then stood, grabbing his hand and tugging him up. "We set a date six months from now, and I need to practice my dancing. Daddy, can you please help me practice so I'm ready for the big day?" As he choked back tears he turned on the radio, pulling his baby girl close to him and he slowly moved her about the room._

He saw Scott standing at the edge of the dance floor, waiting for the song to end so he could cut in and sweep away his bride. Austin hugged Makenna a bit tighter for a moment, imprinting this memory of their dance together into his mind with the others already there. He had known the moment the doctor said, "It's a girl" 25 years prior that this moment would come. He knew that she was no longer his bestest girl now, she belonged to another man. Over the years he did his best to be there for every important moment in her life, savoring the moments with her while he could. But now it was no longer his place to do so. The clock was at the final strike of midnight, and she was gone.


End file.
